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| Gutowski's Bakery pastry bag |
Gutowski's Bakery, called Sanitary Bakery when it was opened in 1910 by John T. Gutowski and his uncle, Stanley Wroblewski, baked products and operated a retail store at 517 Eighth St., where the Beaver County Head Start building now stands. John Gutowski took over the business after his uncle died.
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| Sanitary Bakery ad Pamiętnik Poświęcenia Nowego Kościoła Św. Stanisława B. i M. 1928 (Dedication of St. Stanislaus Church book) |
Gutowski's brick building sat towards the back of the lot. I remember the most wonderful smells while walking up Gutowski's walk with my grandma who would speak Polish to the clerks who wore white uniforms and caps.
In 1939 Gutowski's opened another store at 699 Merchant St. Gutowski's also sold baked goods from their red truck which regularly visited Ambridge neighborhoods. Buying from the Gutowski's truck was special. When I was a kid, I normally wouldn't have eaten a slice of jelly roll, but I did when my grandma bought it from the Gutowski's truck.
In 1939 Gutowski's opened another store at 699 Merchant St. Gutowski's also sold baked goods from their red truck which regularly visited Ambridge neighborhoods. Buying from the Gutowski's truck was special. When I was a kid, I normally wouldn't have eaten a slice of jelly roll, but I did when my grandma bought it from the Gutowski's truck.
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| Gutowski Bakery ad The Daily Citizen Trade Area Directory 1956 |
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| Gutowski's Bakery ad 1965 Bridger |
I'm not sure of when Gutowski's closed, but I believe was sometime in the mid-1960s; the bakery still had an ad in the 1965 Bridger yearbook. And the Bridger photo shows those yummy jelly rolls in the display case.
[Update February 18, 2016: The December 31, 1966, Beaver County Times, reporting on a fire at the bakery, mentioned that the building had recently been sold by the Gutowski family to the U.S. General Services Administration, and the bakery building would be razed for a new Social Security office. Fire Chief Ercoli Dininno theorized that the fire was sparked by cutting torches being used by men removing bakery equipment from the bakery.
I still don't know exactly when the bakery closed, but it must have been in 1965 or '66. If you know, please let me know.]
[Update February 18, 2016: The December 31, 1966, Beaver County Times, reporting on a fire at the bakery, mentioned that the building had recently been sold by the Gutowski family to the U.S. General Services Administration, and the bakery building would be razed for a new Social Security office. Fire Chief Ercoli Dininno theorized that the fire was sparked by cutting torches being used by men removing bakery equipment from the bakery.
I still don't know exactly when the bakery closed, but it must have been in 1965 or '66. If you know, please let me know.]
They sponsored my little league team!!
ReplyDeleteThey sponsored my little league team!!
ReplyDeleteI delivered the Sunday paper to Mr Gutowski at home on Highland Avenue. I had to go there first because he went to work so early..but it was worth it to get maple rolls after church at St Veronicas.
ReplyDeleteOur family are relatives. John Gutowski was a brother of Pete Gutowski who lived in Pittsburgh and worked in the steel mills on the South Side. My husband would be a grand nephew. He remembers going to the bakery once as a child. Would love to see a picture of the building which he remembers was engraved with the name in stone.
ReplyDelete